1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to scrapers such as those used for removing paint, adhesive labels or the like from surfaces such as glass or the like, and more specifically, to a wide blade type of scraper having cam driven relatively movable parts.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
Various attempts have been made to develop scraper arrangements which facilitate a quick and easy exposure of a blade for scraping purposes. One example of such an arrangement is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,955,138 issued on Sep. 11, 1990 in the name of Henke et al.
However, while this arrangement has proven relatively effective, it has suffered from the drawbacks that it has not been adapted for use with a relatively wide scraping blade (e.g. blades having a width of 4xe2x80x3), and has a relatively complex, structure revealing configuration which tends to lack aesthetic qualities. Additionally, the operation of the trigger arrangement which controls the blade exposure is, due to its inherent nature, notchy in feel.
It is proposed, in accordance with the present invention, to provide a wide blade scraper that features a slidable housing arrangement wherein a cover is slidably mounted on a base and arranged to be driven between first and second operating positions by a manually operable member mounted on one of the base and the cover.
It is further proposed, in accordance with the present invention, to provide a wide blade scraper that features the use a rotatable cam bearing member which is supported on one of the two basic housing members (viz., the base and the cover) and which engages a cam follower feature on the other of the base and the cover, in a manner which produces reciprocal displacement between the two housing members.
It is additionally proposed to provide a wide blade scraper wherein the cam induced relative movement between the base and the cover, enables a blade to set in place and subsequently clamped in position.
In brief, in order to ergonomically induce relative sliding between a base and a cover member, wherein the base is slidably mounted on the base and wherein the two members go to make a wide blade scraper body, a cam wheel is mounted on the base and arranged to operatively engage a cam following feature which is formed on the cover. Rotation of the cam wheel, which projects out of the sides of a waisted section of the handle portion, with the thumb or the like, induces the cover to slide along the length of the base. As the relative movement proceeds, a wide blade which is mounted at the leading edge of the scraper is released from a clamped state and can be removed, changed or just reversed so that that a dull edge is exposed for safety.
More specifically a first aspect of the present invention resides in a scraper comprising: a lower body having a handle portion; an upper cover slidably supported on the body; a rotatable member operatively supported on one of the body and cover and which is arranged to interconnect the body and the cover in a manner wherein rotation of the rotatable member causes sliding displacement to occur between the body and the cover.
The above arrangement also is provided with an end cap which is disposed on the end of the handle portion and adapted to enclose an end portion of the cover. The reason for this provision is that the handle portion and the cover are arranged to define a space therebetween in which at least one blade which is mountable at the front of the scraper, can be stored, the cap being slidably mounted on the handle portion so as to be selectively removable from the hand portion in a manner which exposes the hollow portion and permits the removal or insertion of a blade thereinto.
In the above arrangement, the rotatable member is mounted on the body and is formed with a cam surface which operatively engages a cam follower structure formed on the inner surface of the cover. Alternatively, the rotatable member is mounted on the cover and is formed with a cam surface which operatively engages a cam follower structure formed on the inner surface of the body.
A second aspect of the invention resides in a cam operated tool comprising: first and second halves which are slidably mounted on one another; a cam follower structure formed on the first half; and a cam wheel having a cam surface rotatably mounted on the second half, the cam wheel having a portion which extends beyond the first and second halves so as to be manually manipulable and rotatable so as to enable selective rotation of the cam wheel in a manner which drives the first and second halves to slide relative to one another.
In accordance with this tool, male engagement features are formed on one of the first and second halves which engage in female engagement slots formed in the other of the first and second halves. The male features are arranged to slide along the female engagement slots in a manner which permits the one half to slide with respect to the other. Further, this tool is such that a handle which is defined by first and second end portions of the first and second halves, the first and second end portions cooperating to define a hollow handle portion which is capable of storing at least one tool element.
This tool further comprises a head portion which is connected with the handle portion and which is defined by first and second leading portions of the first and second halves; and a blade mounting portion defined by the first and second leading portions of the first and second halves, the first and second leading portions cooperating to define a blade mounting site. The head portion is wider than the handle portion and so dimensioned as to extend out on either side of the handle portion in a manner which forms an essentially T-shape, the first and second leading portions being adapted to support a blade between leading edges of the first and second leading portions.